Page 133 of Unsealing Her Fate

“Alright, alright. That’s enough of that now. He deserves more than dirty bread, Charlie. And Andrea, your reaction is normal. You weren’t expecting him to walk in at random, so it was a total surprise. Now you know for a fact he’s here, so you’ll be more prepared to face him when the time comes, which is likely tomorrow. We’ve ripped the Band-Aid off so to speak.” Irene always knows what to say to soothe any situation.

“We can’t tell Jack about this. Not today. He’ll pull the plug on the whole thing,” I warn as I look at both Irene and Charlie. They both nod in agreement.

“You’ll stay out of sight for the rest of the day,” Irene says, looking around her office. “Try to organize some of this mess in here. I’ll help Charlie out front.”

I nod. “I’ve been meaning to offer to help you with this.” I motion to the mess on her desk.

“Well, now’s your chance!” Irene says with a chuckle before walking out front.

“We’ve got this, bestie,” Charlie says, leaning in to give my hand a squeeze before going out front with Irene.

I spend the rest of the day organizing Irene’s office, trying to calm my shattered nerves. When I finish, I look around, feeling quite proud of myself. Everything has a place now, and everything is in that place.

The back door opens, and I peek carefully out of the office door, my heart rate picking up a little. Jack is walking towards me with a big smile on his face.

He reaches for me and plants a kiss on my lips before wrapping me in his arms. “I’ve waited all day to do that.”

“You parked out back?” I ask him curiously.

“Yeah, in case Christopher decided to fly out earlier than Andrew. We can’t be too careful with that asshole. We need to keep you out of sight.” He looks at his watch. “Andrew should be landing soon.”

I swallow hard. I don’t want to lie to Jack, but I can’t tell him Christopher is already here either. He won’t take that well.

I hug him tighter. “Let’s go home.” I decide to avoid the subject all together.

He holds out his arm, gesturing towards the back door. “After you.”

We say our goodbyes to Irene and Charlie, and they both give me a sympathetic but reassuring look when Jack isn’t looking. I try not to look paranoid as we walk the short distance from the door to the truck, but I can’t help noticing I’m not the only one who looks paranoid. Jack’s head is on a swivel. I know I’m safe with him, so I let my guard down a little once we’re inside the truck.

Not a word is exchanged on the way home. My head is swirling, and I feel guilty for keeping Christopher’s arrival from Jack. As soon as we get home, I head straight to the bedroom and change into comfortable clothes. Jack follows me, watching me and studying my every move.

Initially, I think he just wants to sneak a peek until he says, “You know I know when you’re keeping something from me, right?”

That catches me off guard, and I straighten to look at him. “Huh?”

“I’m a literal detective. I spot lies and hidden truths for a living, babe. Just tell me what’s going on. It’s okay.”

A sigh escapes me when I realize I’m busted and there’s no point in trying to hide it further. I sit on the edge of the bed.

“Christopher is here. He came into the café today.” I look up to gauge his reaction.

Initially he pales, then anger mars his expression. He takes a beat to calm himself before speaking. His voice comes out gentle, but it’s very strained.

“You didn’t think you should have called me?”

“It happened so fast, Jack. I froze. That’s not an exaggeration. I literally sat on Irene’s office floor, shaking like a leaf in a storm.” I’m unwilling to hide any detail at this point.

“Did he see you?” His stance is unwavering.

“No,” I answer, almost a whisper. “He was looking for me, but I don’t think he suspects anything.”

I survey his face, hoping he understands why I didn’t call.

“And no one—not you, not Irene, and not Charlie—thought I needed to know the fucker is here already?” he asks fiercely, some of that barely controlled restraint slipping.

“I didn’t want you to worry. I didn’t want you to call off the plan to catch him.” I plead with my eyes for him to understand.

His nostrils flare as his jaw ticks. “No more secrets. I thought we were done with secrets after the fire, and now this.” Pain laces his voice now. I know he has been lied to and hurt before, and now I’m adding to it.

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